Elevator suspension



Oct. 8, 1929. R, P, HlGBEE 1,730,974

ELEVATOR SUSPENSION Filed Dec. l1, 1928 arrow/V573.-

Patented Oct. 8, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I BAY P. HIG'BEE, Ol' PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOB v'llO ATLANTIQ- ELEVATOB COMPANY, INC., A. CORPORATION F PENNSYLVANIA ELEva'ron sUsrENsIoN Application led December 11, 1928. Seria1Io..325,281.

My invention relates to' elevators andis particularly applicable to that class thereof, utilized in garages and designed to normally accommodate two or more automobiles disposed 5 side b side. Such elevators are necessarily provi ed with a relatively large platform and as heretofore constructed and sus ended are satisfactorily operative when the oad is distributed fairly evenly upon the platform as when two cars are located thereon. However, in the operation of such elevators it frequently happens that but one car is tobe raised or lowered at a time and as the elevator platform is usually so constructed as to provide two parallel runways each designed for the reception of a car,it is thus impossible to locate the single car substantially at the center of the platform but only in one of the runways so that the load is disposed adjacent one side or the other of the platform instead of in the middle thereof. Under these conditions with the elevator suspensions heretofore in use, the elevator has a distinct tendency to bind against the rails or tracks in the hatchway on which it runs and various types of suspensions have therefore been suggested with a view to obviating this difficulty, but so far as I am aware, none of them have been entirely successful in so doing for if constucted in such a way as to obviate the binding tendency to which I have referred theyv render the elevator more or less unstable at high speeds so that it tends to move unsteadily while ascending or descending the hatchway.

A principal object of myl invention, therefore, is" to provide an elevator suspension of such character that substantially all binding of the elevator in theshatchway is avoided even though the load on the elevator is unsymmetrically disposed with respect -to its longitudinal center line and which is further effective to cause the elevator to move smoothly and evenly in the hatchway irrespective of the disposition of the load u on the elevator and even though the latter 1s traveling at relatively high speed.

A further object of the invention is to provide an elevator suspension ofthe character aforesaid which may be employed with equal ferred construction, is disposed in a facility on elevators ofthe double or sin le wrap traction or of the drum t pe and which is equall effective for the per ormance of its intende functions upon any of them.

The invention further includes other objects and novel features of design, construction and arrangement hereinafter more particularly pointed out or which will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following descri tion of one embodiment thereeo of as diametrically illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which I have shown my improved elevator suspension as applied to an elevator of the double wrap traction type, the single view showing the elevator as it appears when viewed from the front.

As is usual in elevator construction in the type of that to which the invention' particularly relates the elevator, generally designated as E and which may be of an prehatchway H and arranged to move on tracks T extending vertically along the sides of the hatchway, the elevator being provided with guides G cooperative with the tracks. The elevator also comprises a platform or ioor P which is of suitable size to accommodate the load intended to be positioned thereon; thus when the elevator is located in a garage, the plat` form may be of a width sufficient to accommoso date two cars disposed side by side and under these conditions is usually provided with longitudinally extending, laterally spaced rails R, R respectively disposed at its center and adjacent its sides so as to form two parallel runways for the cars as' they are moved onto the elevator.

Disposed adjacent the up er end of the hatchway and rotatable on orizontal axes are a driving sheave or drum 3 and an idler 00 sheave or drum 4 while at any suitable point is arranged the usual counterweight 5 which is movable vertically. As the several elements to which reference has heretofore been made are usual in one form or. other in eleva- 05 .tor constructions of the character of that to which our invention relates and will thus be readily understood by those familiarwith the art more specific illustration and description thereof would be superfluous.

the sheaves will be approximately twice thev distance between the center of each sheave,

and the adjacent track in the hatchway. u Y

For suspending the elevator I may utilize but a pair of cables or any greatereven number thereof such as four, six, eight or twelve but as, irrespective of the number employed, the lead of one half of the total number of the cables is similar andthe lead of the other half likewise similar, for con-v venience of description I shall refer to a suspension in which but two cables are utilized. .It will, however, be understood that when a greater number of cables are provided, the lead of one-half of the total number will follow that of one of the cables now to be described and the lead of the other half will follow that of the other of said cables as will be readily understood by thos familiar. with the art.

Therefore, inf accordance with 'my invention, the cable C forming one of the pair of cables utilized in the form of elevator construction shown in the drawing is secured at a dead end 10 at some suitable point adjacent to the top of the hatchway and from thence is lead down over a sheave 5 from which the counterweight 5 is suspended, then upwardly over the idler sheave or drum Il, around the driving sheave 0r drum 3, again around the driving sheave or drum 4 and thence partially around the idler sheave or drum l as indicated by the arrows. Up to this point, the other cable C starting from the dead end 10 where it is secured, follows an exactly similar course, but after leaving the driving sheave or drum 3 at the point 3 substantially at the end of its horizontal diameter, the lead of the two cables is not identical, the cable C being led down and about one of the sheaves, for example the sheave 7 on the elevator and from thence upwardly to a dead end 11 at some suitable point near to the top of the adjacent side of the hatchway and the other cable C being carried down and about theother sheave, that is the sheave 8 on the elevator and from thence upwardly to a dead end l2 similarly located with respect to the hatchway but adjacent the opposite side thereof. It will be noted that the sheave 3 is so disposed that the cables both leave it in their course to the elevator substantially midway between the sides of the hatchway while the dead ends ll and l2 are respectively located adjacent to the sidesrthereof nearest to the sheave i or 8, as the case may be, to which the cable extends from its said dead end and are thusy substantially equidistant from the point 3 at which the cables leave the sheave 3. Furthermore, the elevator sheaves 7 and 8 are respectively located substantially midwa between the center of the hatchway and`a jacent side thereof with the result that the sheaves are respectively disposed substantially over the centers of the runwa s formed by the rails R, R with the result t at a. load centered in' either runway is located in sub 7 tion of the load is sustained by the other'.

cable C' and vice versa, so that, irrespective of which side of the platform the bulk of the load may be located, one cable` or the other is always effective to substantially support it. l

The result is that whatever be the disposition of the load on the elevator, that is, irrespective of whether the load be disposed substantially symmetrically thereon or more to one side than the other, the elevator moves freely and smoothly when ascending or descending the hatchway and without any a preciable binding upon the sides of the hatchway or the tracks on which it is guided even though the elevator be moving at high speed. Additionally, the support alforded the elevator by the cables is of such character and so arranged that the elevator is stable throughout its movements irrespective of the disposition of its load and all wobbling or swinginof of the elevator in the hatchway is obviate while because ofthe fact that the suspension of the elevator is effected atY two spaced points, the elevator may be more lightly constructed, with resulting reduction in the weight of the car, than when the suspension is effected at but one point only.

As hitherto stated any desired number of cables may be used and so arranged that one half of them will follow the lead over the sheave 7 and the other half over the sheave 8 as diagrammatically indicated in the drawing by the single cables C and C respectively. Furthermore, while I have herein illustrated and have refered more particularly to a traction elevator of the double wrap type, it is to be understood that the invention is equally applicable to the single wrap type in which V-groove pulleys or drums are used to thereby claim an desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States: I

l. The combination with an elevator adapted for vertical movement in a hatchway, of suspension means for the elevator comprising laterally spaced sheaves upon the elevator, a plurality of cables, and a sheave adjacent to the upper end of the hatchway over which said cables are extended, one of said cables being led from saidusheave about one of the sheaves .on the elevatorand then to a dead end, and the other of said cables being led from said sheave about the other sheave on the elevator and thence to a deadend.

2." The combination with an elevator adapted for vertical movement in a hatchway, of suspension means for the' -elevator comprising laterally spaced sheaves upon the elevator, a plurality of cables, and a sheave adjacent to the upper end of the hatchway over which said cables are extended, one of said cables being led from saidsheave ydownwardly about one of the sheaves on the elevator and thence upwardly to a dead end near one side of the hatchway, and the other of said cables being led from said sheave downwardly about the other sheave on the elevator and thence upwardly to a dead end near the other side of the hatchway.

3. The combination with an elevator arranged for vertical movement and means for guiding the elevator during said movement, of suspension means comprising a plurality of separate cables, a pair of laterally separated sheaves upon the elevtor, a sheave disposed adjcent the upper end of the path of movement of the elevator, and a plurality of cables extending .over s'aid last mentioned sheave and from thence respectively extending downwardly about the sheaves on the elevator and from thence upwardly to the dead endslocated adjacen'tsaid guiding means on opposite sides of the path of movement of the elevator.

4. The combination with an elevator adapted for movement in a vertical path and means on each side of the elevator for guiding it during said movement, of suspension means for the elevator comprising a sheave disposed adjacent the upper end of said path with its periphery substantially tangent to a vertical plane parallel `\to said guiding means and e ui-distant therefrom a pair of sheaves carrie b the elevator and posed su stantially midway between said guidin means and said vertical plane, and a pair o cables extending over said first mentioned sheave and thence respectivel downrespectively disward and around the sheaves carrie by the elevator and from` said sheaves to dead ends respectively adjacent the upper ends of said guiding means.

5. The combination with an elevator adapted for movement in a vertical path and means on each side of the elevator for guiding dur-- ing'said movement, of sus ension means for the elevator comprising a s leave disposed adjacent the u per end of said path with lits periphery su stantially tangent to a vertical plane parallel to said guiding means and equidistant therefrom, a pair of laterally separatyed sheaves carried b the elevator and respectively diposed su stantially midway between sai guiding means and said vertical ipllane, and a pair of cables extending over said rst mentioned sheave substantially to said point of tangency and from thence downward respectively around the sheaves carried by the elevator and from said sheaves to dead ends respectivelydisposed onopposite sides of said point of tangency. 6. The combination with an elevator adapted for movement in a vertical path, a counterweight, and means for guiding the elevator in said path,i of suspension means for the elevator comprising -a sheave disposed adjacent the upperend of the path, a pair of laterally separated sheaves carried by the elevator and a pair of separate cables respectively leading from a dead end over said counterweight and thence over said first mentionedv sheave and from said sheave respectively over the sheaves carried by the elevator and thence to dead ends disposed adjacent the upper end of said path.

7. The combination with an elevator adapted for lmovement in a vertical path, a counterweight, and means for guiding the elevator during its movement, of suspension means for the elevator comprising laterally spaced sheaves carried by the elevator, a sheave disposed adjacent the upper end of said path, a second sheave adjacent. thereto and a pair of cables respectively extending from a dead end to said counterweight, thence oversaid last mentioned sheaves and thence respectively over the sheaves carried by the elevator and to dead ends located near the upper end of said path.

8. The combination with an elevator adapted for movement in a vertical path, a counterweight, and means for guiding the elevator during its movement, of suspension means for the elevator comprising laterally spaced sheaves carried by the elevator, a sheave disposed adjacent the upper end of said path with its periphery substantially tangent to a vertical plane'midway between the rst men tioned sheaves, a second sheave adjacent said sov rst sheave and a pair of cables respectively extending from a dead end to said counterweight, thence over said last mentioned sheaves and from thence substantially at said point of tangency downwardly and respectively over the sheaves carried by the elevator and thence upwardly to dead ends disposed on opposite sideso said plane substantially equidistant therefrom whereby the angular inclination of both parts o each cable below said last mentionedv sheaves with respect to said plane is similar at all positions of the'` I elevator throughout its movement.

9. The combination with an elevator adapt- Y ed for movement in a vertical path and means on each side of the elevator for guiding it during movement, of suspension means for the elevator comprising a pai-r of laterally spaced sheaves carried thereby and respectively located substantially over the points of normal elevator load, a sheave disposed adjacent the upper end of said path and a pair of cables extending-over said sheave and respectively downwardly and about the sheaves carried bv the elevator and from thence upwardly to dead ends located on opposite sides ofthe sheave near the upper end oixsaid path and substantially equidistant from the point where the cables leave said sheave.

10. The combination with an elevator adaptedfor movement in a vertical path and means on each side of the elevator for guiding it during movement, of suspension .means for the elevator comprising a pair of laterally spaced sheaves carried by the elevator, a sheave disposed near the upper end of the said path with its periphery Substantially tangent to a vertical plane midway between the sheaves carried by the elevator and a pair oi cables leading' downward from the rst mentioned sheave substantially at said point of tangency, thence respectively about the sheaves carried by the elevator and thence upwardly to dead ends disposed on opposite sides of said plane substantially equidistant therefrom.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 8th day of December. 1928. RAY l. HGBEE.

manera 

